I’m a Director, I’m Not Bad

That night, Kobe Bryant posted photos of the front and back of the painting on Twitter.

Caption:

"My friend Xu, a talented director. When we were chatting together, he drew a picture. Thanks, man. To that kid whose dream never died."

There are two pictures in total.

One picture shows the back of John Wick walking into the rainy night with a gun.

One picture shows the boy stubbornly shooting the ball.

Kobe naturally has a lot of Twitter followers.

As soon as he posted these two photos, they immediately attracted the attention of many fans.

However, everyone did not have any association with these two paintings.

Kobe's Twitter is not very commercial. Most of the time he posts about things in his own life. There are many similar recommendations, such as "Drinking with XX today" or "Cartoons watched by my daughters" and other fragments of life.

So after seeing these two paintings, everyone didn't think too much about them.

It just feels... quite rough.

Although I admit that that sentence is quite good, but... the simple line drawings are really not particularly amazing in everyone's eyes.

But Kobe really liked it.

The next day, Xu Xin received his message.

He ordered a picture frame for this line drawing.

It was placed on top of his fireplace.

Pictures with family members.

Xu Xin understood that it was not that there was anything special about his painting.

The reason why Kobe put this painting in that position is just because it was his childhood self.

But the one who really reacted enthusiastically was the Chinese side.

As... one who can almost be said to be the most popular sports star in China, someone who can suppress delegations and players from all other countries in the Olympics and receive cheers and applause that are comparable to those of Chinese players when they enter the stadium, Kobe and This wave of collaboration between Xu Xin and the gods has aroused at least one topic on the Internet that has entered the top 20 hot searches.

Everyone is curious about how Kobe and Xu Xin met.

I am also curious about the meaning of those two paintings.

The little boy who shot the basketball could understand, probably Kobe himself.

What's the back of the man in the suit?

They don't understand.

However, Keanu Reeves, who has nothing to do with the NBA, liked Kobe's tweet.

Of course, this matter was quickly submerged in the flood of information on the Internet.

No one cared about it.

…

On July 5th, US time, "Man of Tai Chi" will be released across the board.

Keanu Reeves was busy promoting the movie after he came back, and Xu Xin never met him.

On July 5th, he made a special trip to the cinema to see what this movie was like.

But...to be honest, the attendance was average.

Even though the film received a lot of praise in Cannes, the theater where Xu Xin went during the prime time at around 8pm was not full.

Soon, the video begins.

The film, which cost less than 15 million dollars... it is estimated that it will only cost 20 million U.S. dollars at most after promotion and distribution.

And more than an hour later...

Xu Xin sighed helplessly.

well.

When he got home at night and saw his wife who had just returned from Luc Besson's place, his first words were:

"Old Chen is still suitable to be a martial artist, forget about acting."

Yang Mi was not surprised.

Because she had seen the trailer of "Man of Tai Chi".

The so-called expert will know whether there is something or not as soon as he takes action.

Of course there is no problem with Brother Ji, but... the scenes with Lao Chen are awkward no matter how you look at them.

What's more, my husband is a director.

Which actor he is, can be determined almost at a glance.

So he asked:

"What about leaving aside acting skills? How about that?"

"It's okay. It's very immature, but the film was shot in a straightforward manner. The story also has the expressions it should have, and he, Simon Yam, and Mok Wen-wei also supported the other characters. Overall, after watching it, You may not think it’s as exciting as you imagined, but you definitely can’t criticize it.”

“Where’s the attendance?”

"It's not full... It turns out that even with Keanu's bonus, it's quite difficult for a group of Asians to have a good time in Hollywood..."

"..."

Hearing this, Yang Mi suddenly fell silent.

Xu Xin gurgled down half a bottle of water, turned to look at his wife who was in a daze, and asked:

"What's wrong?"

As he said that, he immediately realized what he had just said...

"Hey, look at my crow mouth."

"That's not the case."

Yang Mi shook her head slightly:

"I'm not afraid of "Pacific Rim" being a blockbuster. No matter what, that movie is still a qualified popcorn movie. I was thinking about "LUCY"..."

"I advise you not to make any estimates for the North American market. As long as Luc Besson doesn't do tricks in that film, I guess... with the reputation of "This Killer Is Not So Cold" and your reputation, it should be fine. Including The same is true for this "Pacific Rim". You don't have a historical mission to improve the status of Asian actors... Let's not think about taking the lead, just do your own job. The country is your base."

In fact, in the past few days, he could detect that his wife's mentality was a bit unbalanced.

Just like she said.

The road went so smoothly, and success became a matter of course at some point.

Then a little bit of wind and rain will stir up waves in my heart.

He had been thinking about it for the past few days, but he hadn't found any chance.

In the final analysis, "Pacific Rim" is an industrial product of science fiction special effects. I obviously knew that I was positioned as a tool when I took the script, but in the past two days, I have been searching for relevant news on the WHAT'S APP and Twitter.

On the surface, I say I don’t care, but on the inside I still care.

This kind of behavior is certainly correct, but it is not worthy in his opinion.

Maybe...she will feel better only when the movie is released in North America and China and everything settles.

And the two of them did not extend the topic any further.

It's getting late, so it's really a good idea to go to bed early.

Later, at noon on July 6, Xu Xin sent a message to Brother Ji and asked about the box office on the first day. The reply he received was: the box office on the first day in North America was US$3.17 million.

In fact, it is not optimistic.

Hollywood has a very standard three-fold return on investment principle.

If the cost of this film is 20 million US dollars, this film can earn back at least 60 million US dollars.

Including China, this film was released in a total of 7 countries.

Just when Xu Xin was wondering how he would get back his money, Brother Ji sent another message:

"The box office of Tianchao on the first day is also out, 21.4 million."

This box office figure is not too exaggerated, but Xu Xin understands that it should not be difficult for this film to return to its original goals.

The North American side calculated a box office of more than 20 million, and the Chinese side calculated based on this data, then the final box office result should be between 250 and 300 million.

According to the 35% share, the cost will definitely be enough.

You can even make a small fortune.

He sent a congratulatory message to Keanu Reeves.

I got a LOL reply from the other party.

Clearly, very happy.

Facts have proved that Xu Xin's guess was actually correct.

On July 7, the Chinese box office on the second day actually reached 34.1 million!

The increase is quite obvious.

And the Douban score has also stabilized at 6.9.

It is a qualified popcorn movie.

According to the review, it is "Finally, we can see a foreign movie that can calmly think about our own chivalrous spirit and martial arts values. Although the understanding is still very superficial, it is full of sincerity. The fighting is also very beautiful, quite good .”

This comment has the highest number of likes on Douban.

Obviously it speaks to everyone's feelings.

There is no strong indoctrination of Hollywood viewpoints. Keanu Reeves's film truly stands from a perspective that can be accepted by all Chinese people. It uses a foreigner's perspective to try to understand and explore the alienation between Kung Fu and this era. feel.

Coupled with the smooth narrative plot of genre films, it has achieved very good box office results.

The box office in North America has also improved, with the box office on the second day being US$4.42 million.

Judging from this, the box office in the first week will be about 20 million US dollars.

At first glance, it seems that it is not difficult to make back the money, but in fact, if this trend continues, it is estimated that after the first week, which is the theoretical peak period of box office explosion, has passed, this film may face a situation of compressed film schedule.

To put it bluntly, there is no potential left to explore.

As for the final box office result...it can only be said that the limit should be around US$45 million.

So next... the distribution company's main focus should be on China's side, right?

And the reality was exactly what he thought.

On the afternoon of the 7th, Xu Xin saw the thank you video recorded by Keanu Reeves on Weibo.

"Hey, friends from China, hello, this is Keanu Reeves. I'm here to thank you for your love for "Man of Tai Chi"..."

Looking at Brother Ji who had just opened his own Weibo, Xu Xinxin said that his idea was indeed correct.

The mere mention of the name Keanu Reeves is worth at least $20 million.

In the next few days, the two movies were almost tied.

The highest box office of "Tai Chi" was US$6.02 million on July 9.

The domestic box office record is also set at 41.3 million.

From the initial recognition, over time, I began to question why Keanu Reeves must choose Chen Hu as the protagonist...

The film's reputation inevitably began to decline.

There is nothing we can do about this.

Chen Hu's acting skills as the protagonist are indeed flawed.

There's nothing to wash about this.

As a friend, Xu Xin can only say that fortunately, it seems that the film will have no problem repaying its original cost. As for whether you earn more or less...that depends on your fate.

With this feeling, on July 10, he said goodbye to his wife and boarded the plane back home alone.

Brackets: civil aviation.

This time he returned to China for two things.

One is to apply for a visa to Italy. It has expired. If it is time to renew, you must go in person.

Another thing is to attend the opening ceremony of "Still Fantasy·7V Store".

Even though Yang Mi's movie will be released in two days, he can only support it in China.

On July 11, a total of 26 countries and regions, including Tianchao Wanwan Province, began to release "Pacific Rim" simultaneously.

Xu Xin also got off the plane in the evening breeze and returned to his empty home despite the hot weather.

He didn't sleep on the plane, but had been sorting out the information needed for "John Wick". At this time, his head was a little swollen and aching from sleep.

But after taking a shower, I felt a lot more relaxed.

Leaning on the bed, he planned to tinker with his phone for a while before going to sleep.

Then I saw the lively chatting in the group.

There are one or two hundred messages.

He started climbing the stairs.

The cause was found to be a screenshot posted by Wang Sicong.

The screenshot above...I don't know where the message board is...or the forum?

Anyway, it is a kind of software with a very underworld tone, and someone is leaving messages on it.

"Damn it! "Pacific Rim" is so good! The mechas are so cool!"

"Did you get the tickets? I didn't even buy one, so I can only go and see it tomorrow. Is it good to watch?"

"Yes, it's very beautiful! The mecha is super big! The feeling of fighting monsters on the IMAX screen is like being slapped in the face!"

"Yang Mi's look is so beautiful."

"She is no longer as sweet as she used to be in the past few years. She is becoming more and more charming, but her beauty is also becoming more and more stylish. She is super upright!"

"Anyway, after I watched "The Grandmaster", I can no longer look directly at Yang Mi. I feel like she is extremely fierce and may domestically abuse Xu Xin anytime and anywhere."

"I also prefer her during Qingyi's period. This time her hair is so short and her makeup is so poor. It doesn't look good."

“This movie is so awesome!!!!”

After looking at the first screenshot, Xu Xin looked at a few more.

Is this a Wanwan forum?

They don’t talk about relying on cups in Xiangjiang, right?

After thinking about it, he looked down and found that it was a picture taken by Wang Sicong by climbing over the wall to Wanwan Forum.

Wanwan's review of "Pacific Rim" was very good, and he thought it was a very enjoyable movie to watch.

Jay Chou was still wondering what he was doing at Fanwanwan Forum when he had nothing to do.

The reply I got was: Go against those banana idiots.

And next...

how to say.

key!

Key hard!

Wang Sicong, like an angry young man, started talking about how he went to the forum over there to quarrel with others.

Then Jay Chou asked how to get over the wall...

Xu Xin's eyes widened when he saw it.

A person outside the wall asks a person inside the wall how to climb over the wall to see the world?

Wang Sicong was also puzzled, but found out that he was using a mainland mobile phone here and could not see outside...

Then there was a period of step-by-step teaching, and then Liu Yifei called Liu Zhishi and said that she had seen the promotional video of "I Want to Be Good with You".

In the end, everyone in the group was confused and talking about their own things.

Xu Xin didn't care about what they said, but instead responded to Wang Sicong:

"Wanwan's response was good?"

"You're back?"

"Well, I just got home and am going to sleep. How is the reaction from the Wanwan Forum?"

"It's pretty exciting. They all say it's good-looking, and the special effects of this movie are full. There are also a group of people who are obsessed with your wife, and I don't have the nerve to take screenshots... Oh, yes, there are also people who spray you. It's a normal operation to spray you. After all, the hatred of a wife is irreconcilable. The rest is nothing... By the way, have you not seen this movie? Don't sleep, let's watch the premiere together later? "

Seeing his invitation, Xu Xin was quite moved.

Unfortunately, his temples really hurt from staying up late at the moment.

replied:

"Forget it, I'm going to bed. I have a headache from staying up late. I'll say good night tomorrow."

After turning off the lights, he still didn't forget to send Yang Mi a WeChat message:

"If you scroll up in the group, there are reviews of the movie on Wanwan Forum. I'm going to bed, good night."

…

On July 12, after he completed the visa matters and ensured that the David Award in Italy would not be delayed, he went directly to the office of Xiying Film Studio.

Although the fine editing has not yet been completed, several demo demos of the soundtrack were brought over.

All the post-production aspects of "Breaking Silence" this time are actually not complicated, and there are not many places that require soundtrack.

His definition of this movie is to present a story to the audience with a simple mentality.

Moreover, this story is a story that takes place in a remote area and does not require a particularly grand soundtrack.

Xu Xin gave Chen Qigang the script and rough-edged plot clips, hoping to see if he had any inspiration. As a result, the other party directly sent him a dozen DEMOs to compare different clips, so he had to excerpt them.

When we arrived, Chen Qigang was already waiting there.

Chen Yucheng is also there.

After Xu Xin saw it, he quickly smiled and confessed:

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Director Chen, I'm late."

As he spoke, he waved to Chen Yucheng next to him.

Chen Qigang handed over a cigarette with a smile:

"Is everything okay...just came back from the United States?"

"No, I just arrived last night. I started sleeping when I got home around 7 o'clock, and I didn't wake up until almost 9 o'clock today...I'm tired."

As soon as Xu Xing finished speaking, Chen Yuqing asked nicely from the side:

"Is it fun this season in Los Angeles? Is it hot?"

"Hot, uncomfortably hot."

After Xu Xin responded, he asked:

"You want to play there?"

He knew that Chen Yucheng was a person who liked to wander around the world.

I can't stay idle at home.

But before the other party responded, Chen Qigang complained angrily:

"What the hell! In the past two years, he has not been allowed to go anywhere. He has stayed at home!...Xiao Xu, you happen to be here. In the past two days, you can ask the West Film Studio which crew is going to start filming. Tell him Throw me into the crew and become a field clerk!"

"?"

Xu Xin was a little puzzled.

What is this for?

Lao Chen is already 30 this year, why are he still acting like a child?

Seeing his expression, Chen Qigang showed a very strange expression.

It seems to be fear, it seems to be panic.

After taking a puff of cigarette, he said to Xu Xin:

"After "Scorching Sun" won the award at the Silk Road Film Festival last year, others got a little excited and said they wanted to take a rest and go to Switzerland. At that time, I had a friend here who was quite rich and wanted to enter the film and television industry. . With a play in hand, I started to form a crew. I happened to hear that he had worked with you, so I was dragged into their crew as a sound effects director..."

Speaking of this, Chen Qigang paused for a moment, turned to look at his son and then said:

"The three of them originally made an appointment to go together. He joined the group and the two of them went. When they arrived in Switzerland, they had a car accident while they were out playing. One of them died and the other was injured."

"..."

Xu Xin's mouth twitched.

"If he goes too...the best case scenario is that he will be a high paraplegic, just like that child. The worst case scenario..."

Chen Qigang didn't say any more, and Chen Yucheng didn't refute.

But the look of fear on the old father's face became more and more obvious.

But there was a look of recognition on the son's face that said, "I am very lucky."

"In the past two years, I won't let him go abroad. Just stay at home. Now that he has entered the industry, he should do his job well."

"Understood."

Xu Xin nodded and said:

"Old Chen, do you have a regular team now?"

"not yet."

Just as Chen Yucheng finished speaking, Chen Qigang said again:

"I told Yimou to let him join the team when his film is finished. If you need him for anything in the future, tell him that he is short of work."

When Xu Xin heard this, he understood why Chen Qigang brought Lao Chen here again today, and said with a smile:

"Okay. If Lao Chen doesn't go abroad recently, he can go to the Silk Road Film Festival next month, which is quite interesting. And if there is no fixed team, go to the factory to add procedures. The two people in the factory The weather is a bit bleak and there is a shortage of people. How are you doing?"

Naturally, he didn't believe that with Chen Qigang's status in the industry, Lao Chen would not be able to find a crew to work for.

But there are also differences between the crew and the crew.

A person who can persuade the old man will not be able to find a job for his son?

That's bullshit.

The last time I asked Director Chen to do the soundtrack for "Fierce", I promised that I would have Chen from the crew to come. But... looking at the current situation, Chen Qigang obviously wants to arrange Lao Chen in a "better" way.

Even if I don't have a movie, I can still stay with other crews.

This is what Chen Qigang means by the so-called "lack" of jobs.

and……

It doesn’t matter if he likes Lenovo, or he is too young at heart.

Regarding Chen Qigang's change of attitude in wanting to send his children to the Northwest Circle, he felt that after the status of the entire Northwest Circle had improved, it was worthy of the older generation to cast their "eyes" here.

Instead of like before, he could arrange his son to join the old man's crew, and he could arrange it for him, but he did not go to other directors.

Obviously, he believed that his son would be able to eat if he followed the Northwest Circle.

That's what it should mean.

Sure enough, after hearing Xu Xin's words, Chen Qigang readily agreed without Chen Yulai answering.

"Okay, then let him go to the factory in August. He is 30 years old, not married, and doesn't have a girlfriend. He still goes abroad every day... Don't you know how chaotic foreign countries are? Just be down-to-earth. It's over in China! Look at Xiao Xu, who is three years younger than you, and his children are running all over the floor!"

I don’t know if the two of them are cooperating or what.

Chen Yucheng just laughed.

And Xu Xin also followed suit.

Looking at his friend who was wandering around the gate of "Ghost Gate" in front of him, he thought to himself that maybe he really saved his life...

No matter how you put it, this can be regarded as a "world line change", right?

Saving a life is better than building a seven-level pagoda.